Petee maclellan



' (NofModeld 4 P. MaoLELLAN & W. JONES.

Method of Constructing Matting.

No. 24 2,0I0. Patented May 24,1881.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PETER MACLELLAN, OF GLASGOW, AND \VILLIAM JONES, OF MARYHILL, COUNTY OFLANARK, GREAT BRITAIN; SAID JONES ASSIGNOR TO SAID MAGLELLAN.

METHOD OF CONSTRUCTING MATTING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 242,010, dated May 24,1881.

Application filed February 18, 1881. (No model.) Patented in EnglandOctober 21, 1880.

.T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, PETER MAOLELLAN, a citizen of the United Kingdom ofGreat Britain and Ireland, residing at Glasgow, in the county of Lanark,and WILLIAM J ONES, a citizen of the said Kingdom, residing at Maryhill,in the county of Lanark, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Constructing Mattings, Treads, Cushions, 1oandAnalogousArticles made of India-Rubber, (for which we have receivedLetters Patent in Great Britain, No. 4,281, dated October 21 1880 and wedo hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription I 5 of the invention, which will enable others skilled inthe manufacture to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention, which relates to improvements in constructing mattings,treads, and analogous articles made of vulcanized indiarubber, has forits object to produce a softer or more elastic and more catching surfacethan in such articles as hitherto made, and to effect aconsiderablesavin gin the cost by employ- 2 5 ing india-rubber of much lessthickness than heretofore, and, if desired also of an inferior quality.

()n the sheetof drawings hereunto appended, Figure 1 is a plan, and Fig.3 a section on the 0 line a a, Fig. l, of a portion of a vulcanizedcorrugations are produced by taking a sheet of india-rubber of therequisite size and thickness, and, before the said sheet is vulcanized,4 5 cutting in it a series of slits, a, by means of a hand-tool or of aspecially-prepared stamping or cutting tool or die, which may either beworked by hand or by screw, spur, bevel,

or equivalent gearing, or by other power. These slits a are cut inparallel rows, prefer- 5o ably in the direction of the length or breadthof the mat; but they may also be cut diagonally, as indicated at Fig. 2,or otherwise arranged so as to produce any desired pattern. Into theslits so cut round, square, or other shaped mandrels or rods, d, areinserted, so as to force the solid india-rubber between the slitsalternately upward and downward from the upper and under sides of themat thatis to say, the parts b in each row pass over the mandrel or rodand the parts 0 underit. With the mandrels or rods in position the sheetof india-rubber is then vulcanized in the ordinary manner of vulcanizingsuch articles, whereby the flutes or interrupted corrugations arerendered permanent, and the mat being then removed from the vulcanizerthe mandrels or rods are withdrawn.

By this means of manufacturing mats the whole sheet of india-rubber isutilized,'and the loss of time and material consequent upon removing orcutting out parts of the sheet to form a pattern and to afford ascraping or cleaning surface for the feet is entirely obviated. At thesame time a direct and important saving of india-rubber is effected inanother way, for under this mode of manufacture a mat can be made from asheet of rubber of one-eighth of an inch in thickness, which, whencompleted,by reason of its fluted or corrugated surface, will present athickness equal to that of a mat made under the old mode from a sheet ofrubber having a thickness of half an inch, or more, and, if desired, aninferior quality of rubber may be used.

The flutes or corrugations likewise afford a better surface for cleaningmud or dirt from the feet, and the mat is also softer and more elastic,its softness and elasticity being regulated to any desired extent by thethickness of sheet and the size of the mandrels or rods employed in itsmanufacture.

The improvements hereinbefore described, besides being adapted tomattings, are also applicable to india-rubber treads for stairs or 5other situations, and to other analogous artitreads, cushions, oranalogous articles herein described, which consists in slitting a sheetof ruhher, then inserting rods through the slits between alternatelyraised and depressed por- I 5 tions, and then vnlcanizing.

PETER MAGLELLAN. IL. J WILLIAM JONES. IIL. s]

Witnesses:

(i130. MAeAULAY URUIKSHANK, ROBERT MILLER.

